


When Again It's Morning, They'll Wash Away

by AutumnHobbit



Category: The Hunger Games (Movies)
Genre: Angst, F/M, Hurt/Comfort, Post-Mockingjay, but it's BEAUTIFUL
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-18
Updated: 2014-01-18
Packaged: 2018-01-09 04:50:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,120
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1141640
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AutumnHobbit/pseuds/AutumnHobbit
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Peeta narrates how he and Katniss deal with the arrival of their firstborn.</p>
            </blockquote>





	When Again It's Morning, They'll Wash Away

I open the front door slowly. The auumn wind blows gently outside our house in the Victor’s Village. Haymitch has been supplied with enough wood to last the night and breakfast as well. I shut the door and climb the stairs to our room. I go to the doorway, and then freeze in my tracks. Katniss is curled on her side on the bed, arms hugging herself as she stares off into space, shaking.

I run over to her and pull her into my arms, rocking her. “What is it? What’s wrong?” She seems to snap out of a trance, glancing up at me as if she is surprised that I’m here. I can see the fear written plainly on her features as tears run down her cheeks. She takes my hand and presses it to her stomach. I feel a bit of fluttering, then a couple of soft kicks. I glance back up at her and see her in sheer terror. “I can’t do this, Peeta. It’s so little and defenseless, like...like Rue. Like Prim,” she sobs into my shirt.

“Shh...” I whisper, stroking her hair. “Katniss, it’ll be alright. It’ll turn out okay.”

“But what if I can’t...”

“Look at me,” I say, gently pulling her face so she’s making eye contact. “The Games are a part of who we are. We can’t change that.”

She nods slowly.

“But not all of it was bad. I know, it was horrific. I would never want our child to go through that. But...if we’d never been in the Games, you would never have met Rue. She would have died alone, with no one to comfort her.”

Katniss shudders and relaxes against me. I think she’s beginning to get the picture, so I keep rocking her and talking. “We never would have met Finnick, or Mags, or Wiress, or Annie. We never would have met Cinna or Portia or Effie. And...” my voice grows soft and pained at the very thought, ”I wouldn’t have met you.”

“We might have...”

I just look at her, and she quiets. “It’s possible, but not likely. So while life is risky, we can never predict it, and we don’t know what’s going to happen, or whether we can protect them well enough...do we want to take all the good things away in order to take the bad things, as well? Is it worth it?”

Silence. Then she whispers, “No.” A beat. “But I’m still afraid.”

“Oh, Katniss,” I sigh. “Didn’t I promise? I told you, a long time ago, that I would stay with you.”

She nods, and sighs. “I’m sorry,” she whispers as she starts to fall asleep. All the crying and the fear has obviously worn her out. “You are staying, though, right?”

I pull the throw blanket over the three of us and settle her head on my shoulder. “Of course.”

“Always.”

***

She’s curled in on herself in agony, her hand still clutching mine in a viselike grip. It hurts, but I don’t mind. After all, I was the one who pleaded for so long for her to let go of her fear and open herself up to new life. The least I can do is to stay with her through this.

She’s whimpering again, and I stroke her sweaty hair and murmur to her. She cringes, and grips my hand even harder, if that’s possible, and gives a sharp cry. Another cry echoes through the room along with hers. She slumps back against the pillows again, and I glance up to where Greasy Sae has come over. She lays a small bundle in my arms. “And here’s your little princess, dear,” she smiles at me. I glance at Katniss. Now that the pain has eased off, she’s scared again. I lean over and lay the baby on her chest. “See?” I say softly. “She’s fine.”

Katniss stares at our daghter, who is already rubbing her face against her mother’s chest and falling asleep. She raises her hand to run her fingertip lightly over the infant’s cheek. I look at her again, and the fear is gone, replaced by something I never thought I’d see on her again; wonder.

“She’s beautiful,” she says softly.

I nod. “Just like her mother.” I say. She smiles at me. “Willow, right?”

“Mmm hmm.” I wrap my arm around her and glance down at our daughter, who’s just opened her blue eyes and is glancing up at the two of us. “Hi, sweetheart. Welcome home.”

***

I wake up, frozen, from a nightmare. I clutch at the sheets for a moment to calm myself down and pull back to reality. I realize two things. One, I wasn’t imagining the screaming. I can hear Willow pretty easily from here. And two, Katniss is not beside me anymore.

I get up and pull my shirt on. I walk over to the nursery. Sure enough, Katniss is rocking Willow in her arms, singing a lullaby in a soft voice. My heart clenches when I hear the words.

_Deep in the meadow, hidden far away,_

_A cloak of leaves, a moonbeam ray._

_Forget your woes and let your troubles lay._

_And when again it’s morning they’ll wash away._

I close my eyes and see Rue in the Games highlights with the spear in her stomach. I see the arena exploding. I see Prim whirling and her lips forming Katniss’ name before she was vaporized. I cringe, and Katniss’ voice breaks as she keeps singing.

_Here it’s safe, here it’s warm,_

_Here the daisies guard you from any harm._

_Here your dreams are sweet and tomorrow brings them true._

_Here is the place where I love you._

Willow has stopped crying and is lying on Katniss’ shoulder, sucking her thumb and obviously fighting sleep. Katniss buries her face against Willow’s neck and her shoulders shake. I walk closer. I wrap my arms around the both of them. Katniss turns to look at me. “Prim would have loved her,” she whispers, tears streaking down her face.

“I’m sure she does love her,” I say, stroking her hair and Willow’s soft head. Katniss sighs. “Shall we go back to bed?” I ask her.

“Yes,” she says. “Only....I’m bringing her.”

“Okay,” I smile.

Katniss climbs in and settles Willow on her chest. I sit down next to her and pull the covers over the three of us again. Then I wrap my arms around Katniss’ shoulders as she lays her head on my chest and closes her eyes. Willow sleeps on, peacefully, in her arms.

 _Growing back together has not been easy_ , I think as I rest my chin on Katniss’ head and close my eyes. _But it was worth it._

**Author's Note:**

> I obviously do not own any characters/happenings.
> 
> Please feel free to review. :)


End file.
